[JURIST] The US Department of Justice [official website] said Wednesday that tobacco companies should be responsible for more than $140 million in US government costs associated with bringing a racketeering lawsuit against the industry for misleading the public about the health effects of smoking. In a filing in federal court the government called the companies' tactics throughout the trial "questionable and vexatious" and said that an award of costs, in addition to the $10 billion sought for a nationwide stop-smoking program, is appropriate. The $10 billion the government is seeking [JURIST report] is considerably less than the $130 billion, 25-year program called for by an important prosecution witness and has been a source of controversy [JURIST report]. The DOJ has documents and background material on the tobacco litigation. AP has more.